Damned Rose
by fantasiesqueen
Summary: WinterxJacin quick, humorous, one-shot. Winter is a stubborn movie star who encounters a stubborn bodyguard, Jacin. Classic Hollywood theme for TLC Ship Weeks Week 1 Day 4 Enjoy :)


TLC Ship Week WinterxJacin (Day 5) - Classic Hollywood

By: fantasiesqueen

Words: 1,511

When Winter stepped out of the limousine and onto the crimson carpet, a hush ran over the crowd. This happened often to Winter. Everyone was awestruck by her beauty and grace at the awards show. Winter was nominated for Best Actress for her latest movie "Beyond the Stars". Winter flashed a smile to the looming crowd, and they went berserk. She strutted down the carpet in a creamy dress that flowed to the floor and trailed behind her. The dress went perfectly with her dark, rich skin and coils of black hair. Cameras flashed and the lights were blinding, but Winter kept moving forward.

Behind the velvet roping, a young girl, no older than 5 years old, stood with her big hazel eyes glued to Winter. She was grasping onto a dark red rose for dear life, holding it out to Winter. Winter stopped trotting down the aisle and turned to the little girl. The girl's eyes grew impossibly wide as Winter bent down to her level. Winter glanced up at the woman with her hands on the girl's shoulders, whom she assumed was her mother. The kind woman gave Winter a subtle nod.

Winter took the young girl's hand in her own and pulled her under the velveteen rope.

"Hi, I'm Winter. What's your name?"

"Mary." The girl's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Well, Mary, that is a lovely dress you have on."

Mary quietly thanked her and thrust the rose towards Winter. Winter gasped, exclaiming, "Oh my goodness! Is this for me, Mary?"

A smile graced Mary's face as she said, "Yes, I picked it myself."

Winter gingerly took the rose from the Mary's small hand and brought it up to her nose, inhaling its fragrance.

"But it's not a very nice rose, it gave me a cut." Mary held out her hand, with a bandage around her thumb.

Winter was about to respond to the young child, when a large hand fell onto her shoulder.

Winter startled, almost falling from her crouch. She turned her head to look at the perpetrator. It was a security guard. Tall. Blonde. Fit. His suit jacket was snug to very obvious muscles. Winter fluttered her eyelashes and asked coyly, "Is there a problem, sir?" The security guard responded in a monotonous, disinterested tone, "I have to ask you to give the rose back to the child and send her off."

"Excuse me?"

The guard was obviously annoyed.

"I said, get the girl off the carpet and give back that damned rose."

Winter jaw went slack as she haphazardly covered Mary's ears.

What was this brute's problem?

"Stars above! Watch your tongue mister, this child is barely a sapling. And I don't see what the matter is. She is a child. And this rose is harmless."

The guard huffed and glared at Winter.

Winter got up off her haunches and rose to the guard's level. She was still a good head shorter than him, even in her heels.

"Well," Winter poked the guard in his rock hard chest and read the name tag on his pectoral, "Mister… Clay? I'm bringing this girl as my plus one. And that rose is a gift to me."

"Call me Jacin, and I don't care. The rules are the rules. This girl doesn't have an invitation and for all we know that rose could be poisoned."

"So what if the rose is mean!"

Jacin arched his eyebrow at the infuriating woman. She was crazy. A complete lunatic. Good thing she was pretty. Not pretty. Pretty wasn't a strong enough word. Gorgeous, glamorous, enchanting. Classically beautiful. Jacin knew who she was. After all, who didn't know who the famous Winter Hayle-Blackburn was? She was trouble, and Jacin knew it. But that didn't make up for her stubbornness and insubordination. Nevertheless, he didn't back down.

Jacin and Winter were having a stare down. Winter's onyx eyes were shooting daggers at him. Jacin simply took it. He wasn't going to let one whack-job celeb make him lose his job. After a good minute of fuming, Jacin noticed an incessant clicking sound and flashing light. He whipped his head to the side, there were photographers everywhere. Jacin groaned. That was just what he needed today. Maybe she was more trouble than she was worth.

Jacin threw his hands up in the air. "Fine," he exclaimed. "Just take the blasted rose and go."

"What about Mary?"

"Who?"

"The child!" Winter said, exasperated.

"Might as well bring her along, right?" Jacin said sarcastically. Then, he relented and sighed, "Just get the mother's consent and leave."

Winter's face brightened with a smile. It made her look even more splendid.

Winter walked up to the Mary's mother, hand in hand with the child. After exchanging a few small words, left with Mary to see the award show. Mary's mother was practically glowing, tears welling up in her eyes. Winter had an amazing time with young Mary, introducing her to all her famous friends and giving Mary the time of her life. Mary got tired near the end of the premiere, and fell asleep in Winter's arms. Jacin moped around and watched Winter the entire time from where he was stationed. He watched as countless other men tried to sweep her off her feet. She merely disregarded their advances and entertained Mary.

The next morning, when Winter grabbed a magazine on the way to her photoshoot, she was on the front page. Not a big surprise, since she had won Best Actress. What surprised her was Jacin on the cover with her. They were in the middle of their scream fest, their eyes locked together. The title made Winter's blood boil.

" _ **Lovers' Quarrel? Trouble in Paradise with Winter and Her Steamy Security Guard Beau"**_

As Winter read through the rest of the article she only got more and more frustrated.

" _...Actress Winter Hayle-Blackburn was at last night's award show, looking as beautiful as ever… She was caught in a heated argument with Jacin Clay, her fit, handsome, bodyguard… She laid her hands on his chest very seductively... Who knows what they did after the show… What will Winter do about her scandalous affair with her bodyguard… we can't wait to find out what will happen next between Winter and Jacin…"_

Pictures of Winter and Jacin were plastered across every magazine and newspaper. Winter ran her manager and threw the magazine in front of him.

"What. On earth. Is. This."

Winter's manager glanced down at the magazine and then looked back up at Winter, who was blowing a strand of hair away from her face.

"The paparazzi, that's what happens. Don't fret, this happens to the best of us. It will die down soon enough. I'll just get this Jacin character a new job and voilà. Problem solved."

Winter was still flustered. She couldn't have this blasphemy spreading farther. "No," she said, "This needs to end now. I'm not gonna let this ruin my career or Jacin's. We are going to go to the paparazzi right now and get this settled. All of us."

A few hours later, Jacin, Winter, and her manager had paid off the paparazzi to stop selling their photos. Jacin and Winter walked down the road in silence. He had offered to walk Winter home. After all, it was his job to keep her safe. They walked in silence.

… Until Winter brought up the taboo subject.

"Why would you try to banish that little girl and take away my rose?"

"Back to this, are we?" Jacin said with an audible groan.

"Yes. Yes we are."

"I was just doing my job. Stars above, woman. You are insane."

"I'm not the insane one! Did you really think the little girl would hurt me? You were probably scaring Mary! Did the big bad bodyguard think the little girl would pull out a gun and-"

Winter's loud rant was abruptly cut off when Jacin took her face in his lean hands and put his soft lips to her own. She melted into Jacin in a heartbeat, and kissed him back with vigor. His arms wrapped around her back as he pulled Winter closer to him.

Winter pulled back abruptly. "Wait! What are we… what are you doing?"

Jacin pulled his head back slightly to look down at Winter. He chuckled lightly.

"What?" Winter said, her brows furrowing.

"I've wanted to do that ever since I became your bodyguard. I've worked for so many people who are so ignorant and arrogant, and they don't give their fans a second glance. You, you are truly amazing."

Winter blushed, and then decided to peck his cheek.

Jacin grinned at Winter and said cockily, "Nothing. Just looks like for once the tabloids are true."

Winter blushed and swatted at his chest. Jacin caught her hand, bent down, and kissed it.

"Shall we continue home, Winter?"

"One last thing," said Winter, fluttering her eyelashes.

Jacin smirked and kissed Winter once more, before guiding his Hollywood star back home.


End file.
